Brookings is a somewhat small city located in the state of South Dakota. With a population of 18,560 people and two constituent neighborhoods, Brookings is the fifth largest community in South Dakota.

Unlike some cities, Brookings isn't mainly white- or blue-collar. Instead, the most prevalent occupations for people in Brookings are a mix of both white- and blue-collar jobs. Overall, Brookings is a city of sales and office workers, professionals, and service providers. There are especially a lot of people living in Brookings who work in office and administrative support jobs (16.03%), sales jobs (9.30%), and teaching (8.72%).

Brookings is a small town where college students really create the town feel and character. So many small towns have lost population over the last 20-30 years that having the local college presence in the Brookings area, with all of the energy of the students filling area dorms and apartments each fall, really helps Brookings maintain a good economy.

Residents of the city have the good fortune of having one of the shortest daily commutes compared to the rest of the country. On average, they spend only 11.80 minutes getting to work every day.

Brookings Information and Demographics

The population of Brookings is very well educated relative to most cities and towns in the nation, where the average community has 14.96% of its adult population holding a 4-year degree or higher: 37.93% of adults in Brookings have a bachelor's degree or even advanced degree.

The per capita income in Brookings in 2000 was $17,028, which is upper middle income relative to South Dakota, and middle income relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $68,112 for a family of four.

The people who call Brookings home come from a variety of different races and ancestries. The most prevalent race in Brookings is White, followed by Asian. Important ancestries of people in Brookings include German, Norwegian, Irish, English, Dutch, and Swedish.

The most common language spoken in Brookings is English.